The Okavango Delta – Africa’s last Eden
By Debbie Mc Hardy, 4 December 2018
Having recently relocated from South Africa to Florida, I jumped at the opportunity to do an educational trip to Botswana! The flight to Maun from Johannesburg International airport was a breeze, and Maun airport is a bustling hive of tour guides, travelers, luggage and shuffling of all of the above, to ensure you get on the right plane going to the right camp!
I hopped into my charter plane, which was more like a taxi, as we touched down at 3 landing strips, dropping and collecting passengers, before reaching my destination – Linyanti Bush camp, situated on the Linyanti swamp in northern Botswana. Arriving late afternoon, I was greeted by large herds of elephant drinking and swimming along the river, accompanied by about 200 buffalo and a few hippo. It was breathtaking. Just breathing the smells of Africa and listening to the call of the African Fisheagle brought tears to my eyes. Then a pack of African Wild dog, or Painted Hunting dogs as they are also known, came trotting towards us from the sunset, like the welcoming committee, but they never slowed down to say hi, they just kept running, hunting.
African Wild dog pausing to listen as it hunts
Botswana has lots of water thanks to the Okavango Delta and the drainage system that this vast pulsing wetland creates. It is an oasis in and otherwise dry environment and the animals and birds flock to it.
Over breakfast the following morning, I was offered a trip of a lifetime by Linyanti management – a helicopter flip back over the swamp to the airstrip. What a treat – and since the pilot had removed the doors as it was so hot, we floated above herds of animals drinking and splashing in the water.
My next stop in the airplane taxi was Sable Alley in the Khwai Private reserve, a luxury upmarket camp, new and stylish, with delicious food and friendly staff.
The lounge area at Sable Alley in Khwai Private reserve
I sat on my deck and watched an endless parade of animals moving in and out of the waterhole – elephants, warthogs, giraffe, antelope and buffalo. I had an elephant come up so close I could touch it. The overall safari experience in the Khwai was top notch – lioness with 5 cubs, 2 different leopard sightings, wild dog, and of course plenty of hippo and elephant.
Lion cubs trying to cross the river to get to their mother
Safari vehicle in Southern Africa – great for photos and game viewing.
Next stop on my whirlwind trip was Mma Dinare, a new camp south of Khwai. Once again, the animals did not disappoint. We had some superb sightings, which ended with this magnificent hippo display as we stopped for the obligatory gin and tonics at sunset.
Botswana is the most authentic, wild safari experience in Africa. With no fences, the animals roam free, as they should. They are in abundance and a safari here is guaranteed to give you sights you will never forget. But more importantly the people of Botswana understand this. They are the friendliest, helpful nation, and it was an absolute pleasure and privilege to visit their beautiful country, Till next time…. Go Siame Botswana.
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